Getting the support you need plays a huge role in lifting the weight of depression. It can be difficult to maintain perspective on your own and even harder to sustain the effort needed to beat depression. But the catch 22 is that when you are experiencing depression then it makes it difficult to reach out for help. However, maintaining isolation and loneliness make depression even worse, so nurturing your close relationships and social activities are very important.
The thought of reaching out to even close family members and friends can seem overwhelming at time of depression. You may feel ashamed, too tired to talk, or guilty for neglecting your relationship. Just remind yourself that this is the depression talking. Remember, your loved ones care about you and they want to help.
• Turn to trusted friends and family members. Share what you’re going through, your experience, with the people you love and trust. Ask for their help and what support you want from them that they can give you. You may have retreated from your most treasured relationships, but they can get you through this tough time.
• If invited, go! Keep up with any social activities even if you don’t feel like it, just go. When you’re depressed, it feels more comfortable to retreat into your shell. Isolating yourself does not help your self esteem and the people who do keep inviting you out may not understand that you have depression and they will most probably assume that you no longer want to socialise with them and will stop inviting you out. Being around other people will make you feel less depressed, it will lift your mood and give you a sense of belonging, so even if you really do not want to go, take a deep breath and go for it!
• Join a support group for Depression. This is a great way to create belonging and to accept that depression is something that happens to normal people just like you. It enables you to let go of the feeling of isolation. Groups encourage each other, they give and receive advice and feedback on how to cope, and they share experiences. They can be of a great benefit to you, sometimes just for the fact that they allow you to share, to get things out, to release your feelings and thoughts and to just ‘blurrrrb’ without judgement.

For further help and assistance call 0845 474 5615 or 07709 564426 or alternatively email info@paramountcoaching.co.uk

Anxiety attacks can hit you without warning or you can build up to it, you may know exactly how you create it or you may not have any idea what sets it off, but however you manage it, you know it when it strikes!.
Your heart beats ten to the dozen, you begin to sweat and or go clammy, you may get a rush to the head or dizziness and for some people they have the feeling that they’re going to die.
An anxiety attack can make you feel out of control and unbalanced but a few simple steps can get you back in control and back in balance very quickly, enabling you to get on with things and make rational actions and decisions.
When anxiety ‘strikes’ it’s a reaction to your mind perceiving a danger and then reacting to it in “flight or fight” mode. When the body is in ‘Flight or Fight’ mode most of your blood rushes from your brain to your extremities, so that they have more energy & power. All other body parts/functions are sort of put into ‘standby’ whilst this happens.

So what can we do to avoid this response to danger? How can we stop the blood rush from our brains?

Here’s how:

1) Place your thumbs on your temples (just at the side of your head by your eyebrow ends) and your fingers on the ridge about an inch above your eyes (on your forehead). This then forces the blood to come back to your head, clearing your thoughts and settling your moods. It is best to be sitting down doing this as the return of oxygenated blood to your brain can sometimes leave you feeling a little woozy for a few moments.
Do this for a few minutes and then when you get up, get up slowly.

2) Change your stance, move your body,wiggle and stretch. Stand, feet hip distance apart, knees relaxed. Swing your arms to relax and lower your shoulders. Stretch and reach your hands high into the air and spread your fingers wide. Look upwards and smile (You don’t have to believe it-just do it!). Seriously no idea how it works but doing this somehow tells your body to release some feel good chemicals!

3) Run cool water over your pulse points which are on the back of your neck (or out cold damp cloth against it) or the inside of your wrists. The cold water will not only cool you down, but slow down the ‘rush’ within you.

4) Take a long deep breath, holding it for a couple of seconds and repeat 3 times, breathing deeply into your tummy, (so you feel your tummy go out when you breathe in and then go back in when you breathe out) it’s also a fantastic way to cool and calm down.

Next time you feel anxious give one of these a go or all of them and see what a difference it makes to your recovery and the bonus of it is, that the more often you do these techniques, the quicker your unconscious will take them on board as a habit and do these in dangerous situations instead of creating the anxiety – now that is Cool!

To Your Success!
Loran